The drama, penned by Doctor Who writers Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat, peaked at 7.4 million viewers and took a 28.5% audience share between 9pm and 10.30pm.

Sherlock, which stars Benedict Cumberbatch in the title role and Martin Freeman as Watson, was the top-rating show of the night.

Sherlock beat the star power of Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz, who appeared on BBC2's Top Gear while in the UK promoting their new film Knight and Day, which managed an average of 5.8 million viewers and a 22% share in the 8pm slot. The show peaked at 6.6 million viewers.

Top Gear beat ITV1's 8pm drama Heartbeat, the broadcaster's biggest rating show of the evening, which drew 4.7 million viewers and a 17.9% share.

Channel 4's highest-rating show was the first of a four-part series, Amish: World's Squarest Teenagers, which attracted 2.7 million viewers and an 8.9% share in the 8pm slot.

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